Day 10: Orchid Garden & River Cruise

The next day we didn’t have any morning activities as our Lifeline guide was finalizing all the paperwork and our only activity was that evening. We started with a more leisurely breakfast at the hotel. We grabbed some extra crackers per usual. Right outside the buffet was the water garden and waterfall area of the hotel. I showed Bailor how if he threw part of his crackers in the water the fish would swarm to eat it. His face was full of wonder as he watched this occur. This will come into play later. :-). We found an orchid garden that was nearby and took a cab to check it out. It was a beautiful place with paths crisscrossing water features and all sorts of vegetation. It was hard to believe we were just off one of the busy streets in the very metropolitan Guangzhou. We wound our way past the gazebo, docks, rock sculptures and orchid gardens where there were decibel meters reading at pretty low and peaceful levels. It was a great getaway as it was the first daytime activity where we were just us and the garden was almost empty or at least big enough to not see other people often. I enjoyed off-roading the stroller and taking the road less traveled. This is where the crackers came in and I learned an important lesson about setting expectations with a kid. We had a fairly limited supply of snacks, including crackers. I had apparently set an expectation that anytime you see water if you throw a cracker in it fish will show up to eat it. While that was true in some areas, there were others where they probably didn’t want crackers in the water and there were definitely no fish. :-) So Bailor became a little upset when I wouldn’t let him throw his crackers in the water or sometimes if no fish were available. :-) It was about time to go anyway. We had a little trouble getting a cab, but luckily one came as soon as I took charge of trying to find one so I could save some face. :-)

We took a quick nap and then it was time to get ready for the evening activity a dinner cruise down the river. This was an interesting experience. We waited in the holding area and took pictures in front of the backdrop of what we would see on the river cruise. It looks pretty realistic too! We learned the elements of the evening. We’d go up and back on the river and there was going to be a food buffet for part of the trip and dessert and some children’s entertainment as well as views of some neat sights along the river. It was quite an experience. Our guide got us a table looking out the windows of the boat which was great. All I can say is everything went quickly. When the buffet opened up everyone was there at once. We got our food and traded off checking out the sights we were passing. For dessert got our seconds just as they were getting ready to take that away. There were lots of buildings and neat bridges all edged with colorful lights so it was quite the view. The Canton tower was one sight which is the third largest building in the world. Bailor ate a few things, but he disliked more things than he liked. At the end they had cucumber ice cream which was delicious. We had a good spot for the show which was something hard to describe, so hopefully my video of it can do it justice. Part kind of clownish and Harlem globetrottters, with Ricky Martin music blaring and soccer tricks. It was pretty interactive with the kids attending as well. Bailor wasn’t super interested. Our heads were a little spinning when we got off the boat, but it was a really neat experience.